Xeriscaping: Gardening in Seasons of Drought

In the Southeastern United States, 2008 has been the third year of moderate to extreme drought. Many gardeners have thrown up their hands, put away their trowels and let their gardens go to waste. Visions of a desert landscape, with cacti and succulents, are not inspiring to Southern gardeners, but there is hope!

In an already established landscape, if there remains room for more shrubs, Nandina (Nandina domestica) adds beautiful winter color, as does Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana). Junipers, Spireas and Chinese hollies will also adapt to drought conditions. In the Southeastern coastal areas, Indian hawthorns and Oleander (Nerium oleander) will survive with limited watering and enhance the landscapes in which they are planted. All shrubs do, however, require some watering at planting time and for a period of time thereafter, until they are established.

In new landscapes, in addition to making water smart choices in shrubs, a planting of trees can help stabilize a garden’s dry conditions, by providing shade and thus decreasing the evaporation rate of soil moisture.

Bulbs and Perennials for Dry Landscapes

Among the trees and shrubs, ample space should be left for bulbs, perennials, and, for springtime planting, some annuals. Bulbs, planted in the fall, are much happier in a dry landscape than a wet one, and will reward the gardener with spectacular displays of color the following spring. A scattering of several dozen daffodils under a tree will please the homeowner’s sense of aesthetics for many years to come; a mix of blue and white grape hyacinths will do the same, with a whimsical image, if planted in clusters in front of the perennial border. Alliums and Calla lilies will add a sense of drama and formality farther back in the border.

The advice for adding perennials to a drought-stricken fall garden is ‚”go native”. Native plants have grown up in the region and are adapted to all seasons. State Native Plant Societies have listings of recommended plants. Among those for the Southeast are Rudbeckia, Beebalm (Monarda didyma), Goldenrod, Swamp sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius) and the Climbing aster (Ampelaster carolinianus). Asters in many varieties are a welcome sight in Southern gardens in the fall and require little care.

Plant Care in a Drought

In addition to selecting drought-resistant plants for a garden xeriscape, it is important to give them appropriate care. First of all, not all watering necessarily stops when it does not rain; increasing numbers of homeowners are installing rain barrels (typically 50 or 60 gallons), rainwater pillows (hundreds of gallons and especially suitable for houses built on crawl spaces) or cisterns, to catch and store rain water and use it in their gardens when it is needed. Where local ordinances or laws permit, so-called ‚”gray water” can also be used in the garden. From the kitchen, this is water collected from washing fruits or vegetables, while a plastic pail placed in the shower to catch the cold water when the shower is first turned on, will help the health and development of one’s patio container plants.

In new landscapes, or when rehabilitating an old border, place a layer of newspapers, 2 sheets thick, on top of the soil around the plants before mulch is added. And then mulch! Three to 5 inches of pine straw or pine bark will slow down the soil’s evaporative process and protect the plants’ roots from the sun’s drying impact.

Southern gardens need not abandon their splendor in seasons of drought. Appropriate plant selection and their care make all the difference.